Researcher in Medical College theft case is sentenced

A Chinese scientist charged with stealing cancer research while working at the Medical College of Wisconsin was sentenced Tuesday to time served and turned over to immigration authorities.

His attorney, Michelle Jacobs, argued that continued incarceration would only harm, not protect, the public because it would keep Hua Jun Zhao from continuing his important research.

Zhao, 41, was arrested in March and charged in federal court with stealing data and a cancer research compound with the intent to benefit a Chinese university. The offense was economic espionage.

In a plea agreement, Zhao pleaded guilty last month to a far lesser charge: intentionally accessing a computer without authorization and obtaining information worth more than $5,000.

Zhao faced six months to a year in prison for the unauthorized access charge. He has been held since his arrest, about 41/2 months.

Judge Charles N. Clevert adopted the time-served sentence after finding no evidence that Zhao had intended to defraud or cause any loss to Medical College of Wisconsin, or even to make money for himself.

Officials with the Medical College, in attendance at the sentencing, declined Clevert's invitation to speak.

Zhao was in the country legally, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Ingraham said it's unclear whether Zhao's conviction would require deportation.

Jacobs said another lawyer is representing Zhao on the immigration matters.

According to the plea agreement:

Only three people had access to the cancer research compound and research about it. In early 2012, some of the cancer drug compound was missing. After Zhao became a suspect in the theft, he was suspended. Sometime after that, he gained access to Medical College computers and deleted much of the compound research, which Medical College officials were able to restore.

Shortly after Zhao was fired March 15, investigators learned he had purchased a ticket to China for April 2. During a search of his apartment, the compound research was discovered on Zhao's computer, and he was arrested March 29.

The missing compound itself has never been recovered.

According to a sentencing memorandum from Zhao's attorney, the data he downloaded was his own research, though it did belong to the Medical College and was valued at between $30,000 and $70,000.

"Dr. Zhao did not derive, or intend to derive, any pecuniary gain whatsoever from the offense, nor did he intend for MCW or anyone to suffer a pecuniary loss," the memo states.

"Nor did MCW suffer a loss. MCW was in possession of the most up-to-date copy of all of Dr. Zhao's research data, the file which was deleted was an older version of the data, and all of MCW's electronic information was restored."

Zhao is married and has two sons, one of whom was born in the United States. He and his wife, a nurse living with the boys in China, intended to have their sons educated in the U.S., according to the memo.

Zhao came to the U.S. in 2006 for post-doctoral studies and did research in Louisville, Ky., Tampa, Fla., and Cincinnati before joining MCW.